"I vividly remember our talk on the phone on Dec. 25, a few hours before I announced that I was stepping down from the presidency of the Soviet Union. We reviewed the results of our cooperation. Our main accomplishment was our agreement to destroy thousands of nuclear weapons, both strategic and tactical. Together, we helped to end conflicts in various parts of the world. We laid the groundwork for a partnership between our countries. Those historic results are now in jeopardy. The world is on the brink of a new confrontation and a new arms race", Gorbachev wrote in an article remembering Bush, published by Time magazine on 5 December.
Gorbachev also recalled the Malta Summit, during which the end of the Cold War was declared, calling it a historic breakthrough which became possible due to the two states' joint efforts.
"Today, only joint efforts can avert a new confrontation and the threat of a devastating war, thus restoring the prospect of a new world order—more secure, more just and more humane", Gorbachev stressed.
It was Gorbachev who signed together with then US President Ronald Reagan the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty in 1987. In October, US President Donald Trump said that Washington would withdraw from the agreement citing Moscow's alleged violations of the treaty.
On Tuesday, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that Washington would suspend its adherence to the INF Treaty in 60 days unless Russia returned to full compliance with the agreement. Russia has repeatedly denied the claims that it breached the treaty's terms.